


To Trust

by Vashti93



Series: To Make Team Work [2]
Category: Teen Titans - All Media Types
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-19
Updated: 2020-05-19
Packaged: 2021-03-02 21:02:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,949
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24263299
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vashti93/pseuds/Vashti93
Summary: Red Robin discovered the truth of Raven's healing powers after a particularly rough run-in with Psimon, Plasms, Killer Croc, and Count Vertigo. He is less than pleased to discover Raven has yet another secret she is hiding. (Sequel to Communication Is Key)
Relationships: Tim Drake/Raven
Series: To Make Team Work [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1739200
Comments: 2
Kudos: 25





	To Trust

**Author's Note:**

> I own nothing and no one in the DC Universe.

It was a rainy Friday night, sometime in April. The Teen Titans piled into the common room moaning and groaning, while Kid Flash and Beast Boy fell to the floor. "What the heck was that?" Beast Boy cried woefully from his place on the floor. The other Titans either joined them on the floor or fell on the couch. Raven and Red Robin seemed to be the only two Titans mobile at the moment. "Psimon, Plasmus, Killer Croc, and Count Vertigo," Rose complained from her place on the couch, "how do they even know each other? They don't even run in the same circles."

"Yeah, Rob," Superboy chimed in, looking at his friend for answers. Even he was exhausted. "Isn't Killer Croc supposed to be in Gotham?"

"I think I'm going to throw up," Kid Flash moaned from the floor. "Count Vertigo did a real number on me."

"Psimon had me and Rose fighting each other," Wonder Girl said as she laid sprawled on top of Superboy.

"How are you and Raven still standing?" Rose asked.

"I heal fast," Raven stated.

"I have a high pain tolerance," Red Robin answered. Everyone looked up from their positions to stare at the leader. "It's a _very_ high pain tolerance," he explained.

"He's probably popping pills," Rose muttered.

"Definitely," Beast Boy mumbled from his place on the floor. Raven pulled her hood over her head and said, "Come on guys; I should be able to heal some of your wounds."

"We are so lucky to have you on our team," Rose pointed out as Raven approached her. The empath said nothing as she went to work on the huge bruise that covered most of Rose's forehead. "That feels so much better," she said as she sat up quickly. "Even the dizziness is gone," she said in wonder. "Your powers never cease to amaze me," she patted Raven's head, unaware that each pat made the empath flinch in pain. Thirty minutes later, the Titans were 90% better. They just needed rest. Each Titan thanked Raven before going to their respective rooms. Raven bit her lip. Red Robin was the only one she hadn't healed. And he was nowhere to be found, she realized as she looked around the common room. He was probably in the infirmary. She had seen him get swiped by Killer Croc. She took the elevator down and floated to the infirmary. Yep, there he was, shirt off, trying to patch the nasty claw marks on his abdomen. His back was to her. "I can heal you, you know," Raven said softly. Red Robin quickly grabbed his mask that lay on the bed next to him and slapped it on his face before turning to face Raven. "That's okay. You're tired. You need rest," he tried to smile.

"I can literally feel your pain," Raven said floating closer to him. "Let me heal you," she said.

"Raven, look, I – "

"I'm going to heal you now," she stated firmly, completely ignoring his protests. Red Robin flinched when he felt Raven's hands on his torso. "Sorry," she said shyly. Red Robin shrugged. "No problem," he answered as the soothing touch of her powers flowed throw his wounds. He could feel his skin repairing itself. "So how was your date last night with Beast Boy?" he asked curiously.

"It was…different," Raven answered slowly as she moved to the second bloody swipe. "I've never had anyone show interest in just…me," she tried to explain. "It is…weird."

"At least you're giving it a chance," Red Robin said as he felt her hands move to the next injury. Raven nodded in agreement. "But" she said, "what about you? I hear there's a certain sidekick in Gotham who has your attention."

"Kid Flash talks too much," Red Flash deadpanned. Raven gave him a slight smile. "He caught you two kissing last week," Raven said as her hands moved down to the last, bloody claw swipe.

"That kid," Red Robin moaned, partially in annoyance, partially in relaxation. "He is going to stumble across something one day that he won't be able to unsee," he finished with a laugh. Raven joined him. "There," she said breathlessly.

"Thank you, Raven," Red Robin said smiling at her. "Now go to bed. Fighting and then healing all of us - I know you're exhausted. Tomorrow is Saturday, and I don't want to see you before noon." Even though he couldn't see her face, he knew she was rolling her eyes. "You worry too much," she said as she floated out the infirmary. "You're going to have wrinkles by the time you are twenty." Red Robin smiled as he pulled his shirt back on. He felt great. Raven's healing powers shortened the recovery time the Titans needed in between fights. And Raven…wow…what a difference a year makes. Red Robin was amazed at her growth. Now 15, she had grown an inch or two; she socialized more. She and Beast Boy were in a somewhat tentative relationship. And she was on her way to becoming a close friend to Red Robin. They talked with each other a lot. They talked at night when she couldn't sleep; they watched the sunrise together every other day. It was incredible. He was glad he listened to Bruce. She really was wonderful, despite her father being a monster.

* * *

Raven lay stiffly in her bed, not moving a muscle. She had soaked in her bathtub for all of five minutes before the pain in her body became too great to bear. Now she lay on her bed, sinking in and out of healing trances. The concussion from Rose had healed. The broken ribs from Wonder Girl were no longer broken, just sprained. Superboy had a few bruises here and there, but nothing too serious. Beast Boy had broken his wrist, and Kid Flash had broken his ankle. The cuts across her torso from Red Robin - those had been a lot deeper than she realized. They stung like crazy and weren't healing fast enough. She was tense and needed to relax. Tea always helped her relax. She craned her neck to look at her bedside clock. 2:00 a.m. No one would be up at this time. It would be just her. She looked over to her closet where her capes hung. Nope. Too far away. Besides, she wouldn't be in the kitchen long. Boil water and bring her tea back to her room. Raven slowly sat up in bed and began to stand, careful not to put any pressure on her sprained ankle. She threw on the closest over-sized shirt she could find and carefully pulled on a pair of shorts before floating out her room towards the kitchen.

Ten minutes later, Raven stood glaring at the kettle willing the water to boil faster. The kitchen lights were extremely bright. A migraine was forming. Perhaps the concussion from Rose hadn't quite healed. "You know," Raven started at the male voice, "if you continue to glare at the kettle, you'll probably burn holes through it." Raven turned around to see Red Robin, in pajamas, leaning against a counter, peering at her through his masked eyes. "How long have you been there?" Raven asked.

"I was sitting at the table when you walked in," he motioned to the table and chairs a few feet from the kitchen.

"You were sleeping there?" Raven asked. Red Robin shrugged before saying, "I woke up when you entered the kitchen. You've been glaring at that pot for seven minutes. I was in your peripheral, and you never once looked at me. You didn't even seem to sense me." Raven gulped. "Begging the question – why didn't you sense me?" he asked with a raised brow. "Also, I couldn't help but notice that you are levitating. And instead of using your powers to get your special mug from its high place on the shelf, you grabbed one that was within arm's reach. It's mine, by the way." Raven looked down at the red and black mug sitting in front of her on the counter. She slowly looked back up at Red Robin who was studying her intently. She could feel the wheels in his head turning. He walked to stand right in front of Raven. "You are bleeding through that white oversized shirt," he whispered softly as he pointed down at her abdominal area. Raven swore as she saw the huge, dark red stain. _How had she missed that! She could have sworn the bleeding had stopped._ Raven began trying to think of lies and half-truths to whatever questions he was about to ask. But eventually she gave up. Her migraine was too much. Red Robin reached behind her and turned off the stove, not once breaking eye contact. "Come on," the 16-year-old grabbed Raven by the wrist and began pulling her gently, until Raven let out a small yelp and he immediately let go. Raven floated behind him cradling her right wrist in her left hand. Red Robin scrutinized her more intently, his mind slowly putting pieces together. Raven had been walking upright using all her extremities, but when she came down to heal him, she was floating. His eyes widened as he looked from her wrist, to her bloody shirt, and back to her wrist. And Raven sensed the exact moment Red Robin figured everything out. "I'm taking you to the infirmary," he stated in a monotone voice. But instead of turning around and walking away, he scooped her up in his arms and carried her. Under any other circumstances, Raven would have protested. But she was both mentally and physically exhausted at the moment. She could barely hold her head up. She didn't care.

Red Robin deposited Raven very carefully on one of the beds before grabbing gauze, bandages, a wrist, and ankle brace from the cabinets, along with several other things. He placed the items on the bed next to her. "I'm going to lift up your shirt," he whispered. Raven nodded. She was too tired to argue. Red Robin's face tensed as he saw four, bloody claw marks running diagonally across Raven's torso. He said nothing as he began carefully wiping away blood. Raven inhaled sharply as he pressed too hard on her sore ribs. "Let me guess," he said looking up at her. "Your ribs are broken."

"Sprained, actually," Raven said very quietly. Red Robin _hmphed_ before returning to his work. After the ugly claw marks had been cleaned and correctly bandaged, Red Robin handed Raven the wrist brace, which she took without complaint. He then knelt on the floor and placed a brace on her injured ankle. After double checking her head, he leaned on the bed and caged her in with his arms. His masked eyes stared directly into hers. Raven felt a shiver run up her spine. He really was an imposing 16-year-old. "I bet you're concusses, too," he said.

"Just a slight migraine, now," Raven admitted.

"Wonder Girl had broken ribs; Rose had a concussion; Beast Boy broke his wrist; Kid Flash sprained his ankle; and I took a swipe from Killer Croc. And yet somehow all of our injuries are now on you." Raven opened her mouth to say something, but Red Robin continued. "Thinking back to all the times you healed me and others this past year, your face was always covered, and you would immediately retreat to your room after every healing. I thought you were just resting, but you were doing more than resting. How am I doing so far?"

"Pretty good," Raven mumbled.

"Why would you not tell me, Raven?" he asked, a little hurt that she still didn't seem to trust him…them. "What if we get a call while you're still healing yourself? But you were too injured- "

"That's already happened," Raven interrupted. Red Robin couldn't cover his surprise. "What?" he asked.

"Better to have one injured teammate than four," she rationalized. Red Robin took a step back from her and folded his arms. "Every single time you healed us; you weren't really healing us per say. You were literally taking our injuries and making it yours. That time you healed Kid Flash's shattered knee; the time Superboy was actually shot with kryptonite bullets, and you pulled them out of his chest and healed him – all of those times, our injuries got transferred to you?" Red Robin's voice broke at the end. Raven gave a small nod. "Why wouldn't you tell me?"

"If I did, you would have made me stop healing the others. And I – I can't sit and watch people in pain and not do anything when I am able to do something," Raven said.

"Does Beast Boy know?"

"No," Raven said quickly, "and I want to keep it that way."

"Raven," Red Robin chastised.

"You don't understand."

"Then help me," he said sitting next to her. He held her injured her hands in his.

"Every time I successfully heal someone, I feel one step further away from Trigon."

"But – "

"Taking everyone's injuries seems like a fair trade for being the offspring of destroyer of worlds," Raven looked down at their joined hands.

"Raven, you – you…" Red Robin didn't know what to say.

"I don't mind."

"Raven," Red Robin said as he placed a finger underneath Raven's chin and slowly lifted her head. "You've been through so much. The last thing I want to do is…you've already been through so much...you don't deserve…" Raven shrugged. "It's just another inconvenience I have to deal with. But, one day, I may be strong enough to heal people without having to trade their wounds for my health," she said optimistically.

"You are so…"

"Stubborn."

"Incredible," Red Robin breathed out. Raven stared at him in blatant shock. She had to have heard him wrong. "Life has dealt you the worst hand I have ever seen. And yet, you wake up everyday and decide you're going to fight against evil. If anyone has a good reason to go on a violent streak or something, it's you."

"That wouldn't be very heroic of me," Raven said with a small chuckle. Her breath hitched in her throat when she felt Red Robin gently stroke her cheek. "I'm sorry the Justice League treated you so poorly," he whispered, his masked eyes staring into her purple ones. "You of all people didn't deserve that. You are an amazing, powerful, strong person; and I'm glad you're here. They missed out."

"One man's trash is another man's treasure," Raven joked.

"You're not trash," Red Robin stated firmly. "You are most definitely not trash," he whispered as he continued to stare intently at her. Raven gave a small, barely perceptible nod. "Come on," Red Robin said as he stood to his feet. "I'll carry you to your room."

"I can – "Raven began to protest but stopped at Red Robin's raised brow. "- float," Raven finished softly.

"Let's go," Red Robin said as he scooped the light empath up in his arms. "Originally I said I didn't want to see you out and about until noon. I have changed my mind. You're on bedrest until at least 3 p.m."

"What!" Raven protested. "I will be fully healed before then."

"Nope. The only way you'll leave your bed is if you are carried be either me or Beast Boy or someone else."

"Fine," Raven growled under her breath before muttering in a language Red Robin knew was not from this dimension. Red Robin threw his head back and laughed. "You are so stubborn!"

"You're one to talk," Raven said as they entered her room. Red Robin gently placed her on her bed, mindful of her ribs. "You were making tea," Red Robin said. "You want me to make you some. You can even use my mug."

"I am fine," Raven answered, folding her arms, her face forming a small pout.

"Aw…don't be mad," Red Robin squeezed her cheeks the way a grandma would.

"Stop it," she swung at him. "You, Beast Boy, and Vic – why do you guys always do that?" Raven asked rubbing her cheeks.

"Seriously," Red Robin asked. "Your cheeks are squishy. It's fun," he laughed as Raven stuck her tongue out at him. He looked around her room, his eyes falling on the lava lamp still by her bedside. "You still have the lava lamp?" he slightly mocked.

"Okay, you know what," Raven said, throwing one of her pillows at him, "you can go. You can leave." She made shooing motions with her hands. "Leave." Red Robin left her room laughing. "Idiot," Raven muttered.

The next day, while the Titans minus Raven and Beast Boy were hanging out in the common room, Red Robin made an announcement. "From now on, Raven only heals injuries received during missions. KF," Red Robin said to the speedster playing a video game, "Raven will no longer heal injuries you and Beast Boy get from playing your stupid made up games. If one of you breaks a leg because you decided to piss Rose off, that's your problem. You will deal with the repercussions."

"Oh," Kid Flash said forlornly as Rose gave him a smirk. "Where are Beast Boy and Raven anyway? Are they having their alone time?" he schmoozed.

"Shut up," Red Robin said as he left the common room.

"At least they have their alone time in their room," Rose said as she glared at Superboy and  
Wonder Girl who were currently kissing each other on the other side of the couch Rose was currently occupying. Kid Flash shuttered before returning to his game. "Seriously, get a room," Rose growled at the lovey-dovey couple.


End file.
